In the past, the protection of various pieces of luggage, such as suitcases, valises, briefcases and the like while in transit, has presented a problem. This problem while present wherever luggage is transported, has been particularly prevalent in airports where many pieces of luggage are transferred and handled by many different personnel at various airports nationally and internationally, making it difficult to determine where damage or theft has occurred.
While locks may be provided as a deterrent to theft and pilfering, they can be easily broken and removed with no evidence to draw attention to the point where the incident occurred. The same problem exists with physical damage to the surface of the luggage where marring of the surface such as by cuts and scratches can be difficult to pinpoint as to the area of occurrence.
Encapsulating of luggage with a heat shrinkable plastic wrap has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,299,406. In this patent a method and machine have been described using a system of rolls of plastic sheets and carriers for the luggage which is automatically wrapped with sheeting which is welded together to wrap the luggage while leaving the handle grip free for carrying.
While the method and machine shown in this patent may be effective for the purpose described, the machine is complex, extensive and does not lend itself to varied operations and baggage handling operations where the installation of the machine is not practical because of the size, expense and other reasons.
There has remained a problem to provide a method for wrapping luggage with heat shrink plastic to leave the grip free which can be employed on a practical scale at a modest cost and with efficiency.